As we age our skin is at the mercy of a number of different factors including, sun exposure, diet, lifestyle, heredity, and other habits. All these factors over time can start to take a toll on your skin. It is important to take account for these factors and try to make changes to combat the aging of your skin. We can actively take steps to help our skin stay supple and fresh-looking over time.

As we age changes to the skin naturally occur. Some of these changes include:

Skin becomes more fragile with age

Loss of elastin – which can cause the skin to slack and hang more loosely

Thinning of the surface layer of the skin can cause your skin to be more transparent

Thinner blood vessel walls can cause the skin to become more easily bruised

Dry and itchy skin is common later in life due to the loss of oil glands as we age

Other factors:

Sun Exposure

The largest factor to aging skin is sun exposure. The sun’s ultraviolet rays can damage fibers in the skin called elastin. Elastin is a protein in the skin that provides elasticity and resilience to your skin. The breakdown of elastin can cause the skin to sag and lose its ability to bounce back after stretching. You may not notice the toll that sun is taking on your skin when you are younger, but it will catch up to you as you age. This is why spf is such an important step in your skincare routine and helps with combating against aging skin. Be conscious of how much time you are spending in the sun, make sure to cover up, wear a hat, set up an umbrella when you’re at the beach and liberally apply sunscreen throughout the day! You will thank yourself later in life.

Gravity

Gravity is another factor that contributes to changes in the skin. With age skin becomes less elastic. The loss of elasticity paired with gravity can cause a drooping of the eyebrows and eyelid, looseness under the cheeks and jaw and extended ear lobes.

Facial Movements

This is another contributor to aging skin. Facial movement lines become more evident once the skin loses elasticity. Facial lines are typical as horizontal lines on the forehead and/or curved lines on the upper cheeks and around the mouth.  These lines usually start to appear as people reach their 30s and 40s.

Sleep Position

Many people may not realize, but the way you sleep can affect your skin. The way in which your head is positioned on the pillow can cause creases on the skin. These creases are typically found on the side of the forehead. The best sleeping practice to avoid these creases is to sleep on your back.

Smoking

Smoking produces free radicals, which damage cells and can lead to premature wrinkles. Smokers commonly have more wrinkles than nonsmokers of the same age. Quitting this habit can be a huge step toward younger looking skin.

It is never too late to start focusing on skin care and the overall health of your skin. Aging will inevitably change your skin, but you can work to limit those changes. Having a daily skin care routine is a great place to start! Check out our kits to learn more on how we can help your skin!

Jaliman, D. (2021, May 17). The effects of aging on skin: Dry Skin, loose skin, and more. WebMD. Retrieved October 25, 2021, from https://www.webmd.com/beauty/cosmetic-procedures-aging-skin#1.